1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to shelf supporting devices and, more particularly, to a metal shelf lock designed to secure a shelf in a cabinet against displacement during shipment and/or use.
2. The Prior Art
In the manufacture of various types of cabinets or like products which incorporate shelves, it is desirable to make the cabinet not only so that the shelves be adjustable to different heights but also so that the cabinet can be shipped with the shelves installed and without the shelves becoming loose during shipment. In prior patents, this desirable feature already has been addressed, with various degrees of success. To wit, in my U.S. Pat. No. 3,471,111, there is disclosed a combination of a shelf anchor and of a conventional shelf support that cooperate to hold a shelf against displacement during shipment. In U.S. Pat. No. 3,471,112, there is disclosed a unitary shelf support and anchor including a planar resilient finger located in spaced relation above a shoulder designed to support a shelf. The finger deflects to permit a shelf dropping onto the shoulder and then springs out to prevent displacement of the shelf. In my U.S. Pat. No. 3,870,266, there is disclosed a self-locking shelf support provided with a plug adapted to be mounted in a wall socket. The plug is formed with an axial chamber to house a pin and a spring reciprocable therein. The retractable pin holds the shelf in place during and after shipment. A panel mounting clip for mounting false drawer fronts to cabinets is disclosed in my U.S. Pat. No. 3,979,796. A one-piece plastic shelf support, featuring a smoothly curved deformable web, is taught by U.S. Pat. No. 4,053,132. A shelf support, formed as a continuous section running the entire length of the shelf, is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,395,565. A shelf support of the type featuring resiliently yeildable ear portions is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,432,523. A low profile shelf lock, featuring a resilient crescent shaped protrusion, is taught in U.S. Pat. No. 4,666,117 assigned to a common assignee herein, the P.X. Industries, Inc., of West Hanover, Mass. Austrian Patent No. 260,460 discloses an S-shaped channel for cabinet drawers. Swiss Patent No. 389,197 discloses a plurality of embodiments of one-piece plastic shelf supports. And British Patent No. 1,540,224 discloses a one-piece plastic shelf support featuring a flexible lip. Despite the availability of so many and varied shelf locks, or perhaps because of it, there is still plenty of room left for improvements.